H.R. 749, the Eliminate Privacy Notice Confusion Act, passed the U.S. House of Representatives on March 12. The bill was passed by a voice vote, with no opposition. It now must go to the U.S. Senate for action.

H.R. 749 would eliminate the current requirement that credit unions have to mail annual privacy notices to their members explaining information sharing practices even when a financial institution’s privacy policies have not changed. Instead, it would require credit unions and banks to provide information only if privacy policies have changed at their financial institution.

“For the second time, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in the House of Representatives have supported this commonsense legislation that would eliminate unnecessary, costly, confusing and often ignored mailings that clog up people’s mailboxes and I am confident that the Senate will embrace this legislation as well,” Luetkemeyer said. “This bill will reduce costs passed onto the customers of banks and credit unions and will make it more likely that people will pay closer attention to important mailings they receive from their financial institutions.”

It’s estimated that credit unions alone have sent one billion annual privacy notifications to members since 2001.

There are several ways to contact Congressman Luetkemeyer's office to share appreciation for his efforts in H.R. 749. If you choose to send a hard-copy letter, please send it to one of the district offices.